Alameda City Councilmember Lena Tam Cleared

Big news of the day: the County District Attorney has cleared City Councilmember Lena Tam of all allegations of misconduct levied against her by Interim City Manager Ann Marie Gallant.

“The District Attorney found there to be insufficient evidence of either criminal violations or purposeful failure to carry out the mandatory duties of office to justify initiating proceedings that would result in presentation of evidence to the civil grand jury that seeks to remove Ms. Tam from office,” a press release from the district attorney’s office reads.

Tam broke the news at a press conference on the steps of City Hall, calling the allegations against her “politically motivated” and part of a “self-serving character attack.”

Tam pointed out that the more than $100,000 the city spent on the case (including attorney fees and new software for filtering through emails) could have been spent on other services, including two year’s worth of rent for the Alameda Museum, four months of the contract with the county’s emergency medical serices, or increased hours at the library for one year. Tam also called for an apology by the mayor and the resignation of Gallant.

The press conference was attended by more than 50 supporters, including Alameda firefighters, prominent members of the local Asian community (including County Supervisor Alice Lai-Bitker and Carl Chan, a leader in Oakland’s Chinatown), members of the League of Women Voters, and local politicians.

But it sounds like the affair isn’t over yet. Calling the DA’s decision “tentative,” Gallant said in a press release today that the city is now considering filing a civil lawsuit against Tam. The City Council will hold a closed door meeting about that on Thursday.